I'd heard lots of praise for The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw before I read it, so I wondered it it would live up to the hype. Happily it does and I found it a meaningful read.
This collection of nine short stories features Black women of a wide variety of ages. The common theme is one of my favorites - general market novels in which the Church plays a key role, often in a negative way (think Saving Ruby King, The Dearly Beloved, Ordinary Grace, and The Mothers). Churches are led by and attended by human beings who are flawed, complicated, and nuanced as are the characters in Ms. Philyaw's stories.
Although less than 200 pages, I read this in a 'slow but steady' fashion, enjoying one story between every book I read. They made me laugh, cry, raise my eyebrows, and marvel at the strength of the human spirit. My favorite was Not-Daniel whose main characters meet while visiting their mothers who are in hospice.
The author has a fabulous book club guide on her website which includes discussion questions for each story, several playlists, and three recipes including one for peach cobbler (IFKYK). I'm eager to read the next work of fiction written by Ms. Philyaw.
This collection of nine short stories features Black women of a wide variety of ages. The common theme is one of my favorites - general market novels in which the Church plays a key role, often in a negative way (think Saving Ruby King, The Dearly Beloved, Ordinary Grace, and The Mothers). Churches are led by and attended by human beings who are flawed, complicated, and nuanced as are the characters in Ms. Philyaw's stories.
Although less than 200 pages, I read this in a 'slow but steady' fashion, enjoying one story between every book I read. They made me laugh, cry, raise my eyebrows, and marvel at the strength of the human spirit. My favorite was Not-Daniel whose main characters meet while visiting their mothers who are in hospice.
The author has a fabulous book club guide on her website which includes discussion questions for each story, several playlists, and three recipes including one for peach cobbler (IFKYK). I'm eager to read the next work of fiction written by Ms. Philyaw.
